


Find Me

by JET_MacLeod



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-31
Updated: 2014-10-19
Packaged: 2018-02-15 12:19:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2228778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JET_MacLeod/pseuds/JET_MacLeod
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU story that starts after Pan's Curse is broken by Regina revoking hers and they all end up back in FTL without Henry and Emma.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Mirror, Mirror

Mirror, Mirror

She sat staring out the window. She wasn’t looking at anything. She didn’t see anything but her memories. She didn’t hear Snow walking up behind her. She didn’t care about anything. She knew that there wasn’t anything that she could do. She caused her own heartache. She would have to learn to deal with it.

“Regina?”

“Snow.”

“We’ll find a way.”

“I can’t go back.”

“Sure you can.”

“Magic comes with a price and this is mine.”

“I refuse to believe that, Regina. Emma found us once. I am sure that she’ll find us again.”

“She broke my curse because she was meant to do it. She will have no memory of that, Snow. She will have no memory of us. I tried to give her a better life than she had before that, but I can’t know if it worked. She will have had Henry from his birth. The rest was up to her.”

“She is resilient. She’s fine. And, so is Henry. But, we’ll find a way to get back to them or to bring them to us,” Snow said.

“You would pull them out of their happiness to bring them here?”

“They are family.”

“You would sacrifice their happiness to ensure your own?” Regina asked her.

“Wouldn’t you?”

“I already did.”

Snow looked at her. The curse was supposed to be Regina’s happiness, but it wasn’t. She was finally beginning to see that when they were cursed back to the Enchanted Forest. Snow has stopped her from burying her heart. She had promised to help her find a way back. 

It had been weeks. Regina was losing hope. Rumple was dead. She had no other magical ally to help her in the search to find a way back to the “Land with no magic.” She was losing everything again. Snow’s promise to find a way was no longer a comfort. She didn’t care that no matter what Snow always found a way. She needed some sort of instant gratification.

“Regina, we’ll find a way. The fairies are looking in old myths and legends. Even Tiny is working with Grumpy in the old gardens to grow some beans. We’ll get them back.”

“I doubt that Blue wants to help me,” Regina stated.

“She isn’t doing it for you.”

“But, she has to know.”

“She does.”

“And, yet she is willing to help me?”

“Not everyone holds on to their grudges, Regina. Sometimes we can get past them to help our enemies mostly because it is the right thing to do. Besides, I think that Tink had something to do with it. She has become your patron fairy.”

“Tink,” Regina said with a laugh, “She’ll never give up on me will she.”

“She believes in second chances.”

“But, I don’t deserve one.”

“You’ve proven yourself to me, Regina.”

Regina turned sharply to look at her step-daughter, her brown eyes studying the blue hazel of hers. She couldn’t see the contempt she used to see there, but only sadness, worry and was it possibly love. Regina gasped when she saw Snow’s expression. She had grown not to hate her, but Snow still was Snow and cared for her.

“I…”

“Don’t worry about it, Regina. I saw the woman that my father married return. You put Emma and Henry before yourself. There was no hatred in it, only love. I know that. I remember when you used to look at me like that, before Father died. I want them back, too.”

Regina cast her look back out the window. There was still nothing new outside. Nothing to catch her eye, nothing to make her forget, there was nothing to help her out the window. She just continued to stare and tried to will her tears not to come.

“Regina?”

“What, Snow?”

“When we came back…”

“Yes?” Regina asked, her obvious agitation apparent.

“When we came back, did Sidney?”

“I am sure that he did,” Regina said getting more and more agitated that Snow hadn’t left her to her own misery.

“Did he return to the mirror or as a man?”

Regina turned at looked at Snow. She hadn’t thought about it. Sidney was a genie. He had powers. She’d exiled him to her glass even after he’d been freed by King Leopold. She might be able to use him again, at least just to see Henry and Emma.

“I don’t know,” Regina finally answered.

Snow just smiled brighter at her. How they hadn’t thought about it earlier, neither of them knew nor did they care at the moment. Snow waited for her to find one of her many magic mirrors. When Regina pulled one out from behind a curtain, Snow just smiled more.

“It might not work,” Regina told her.

“It might work, as well,” Snow replied.

“I can’t believe that I am actually to about to say this. It is almost too cliché even for us, but here goes nothing,” Regina said and then sighed, before continuing. “Mirror, Mirror on   
the wall, are you still there for me to call?”

The mirror swirled and swirled, but a face didn’t appear. Regina’s hope was crushed. But, Snow reached out to her and touched her hand. She heard Snow’s gasp and looked up into the mirror again. It was swirling like it was waiting for another question.

“Ask it something else,” Snow encouraged.

“Mirror, mirror on the wall, can you show my son?”

The mirror’s swirls changed color and suddenly there was a bright flash of light. When they both opened their eyes, they could see Henry smiling at someone. It was just his face, but it was enough to make Regina begin to believe again.

“We will get them back.”

“Yes, I believe that we will.”

Regina stared at the mirror long into the night, even after Snow had left. She could see Henry. She hoped that it would be enough to sustain her long enough for her to find a   
way back to Storybrooke and to the Land without magic. It gave her renewed strength. She would find a way back to her son. She would. She would use the mirror if she had to, but she would do it.

As the hours crept by and morning began to appear in the distance, Regina still sat at her dressing table in front of the mirror. She was watching Henry sleep. He looked so peaceful and happy. It did her heart good to see him like that. She knew that it was wrong to keep watching him, but she couldn’t stop herself. He was her son. 

It wasn’t until she heard the alarm go off in his room that she realized that it was truly morning. She continued to watch, promising herself that she would sleep when he woke. She would watch over his nights, making sure that he was safe and protected, even though she knew that there was nothing she could do from the Enchanted Forest for him. She was amazed at how her heart actually sped up when she saw Emma come into his room and wake him.

Suddenly, she couldn’t breathe. She remembered being on the deserted road, holding Emma’s hand and promising her a better life. She remembered staring into her green eyes   
and feeling her heart break. It was like a monumental damn had broken and she was going to lose it all again. The sight of Emma, smiling at Henry as she woke him in the morning, broke Regina’s heart. There was nothing that she could do about either. She had given them both new memories for their best chance at happiness. They would live on in happiness while she did not. Emma’s smile was too much for her.

She waved her hand at the mirror and the image disappeared. She walked back out to her balcony to greet the morning. She took each step with a heavy heart and a determined mind that she would find a way to get back to them, even if it wasn’t to Storybrooke. She knew that Storybrooke was gone. She could go to them, wherever they were. They could all be happy there, without magic, but together. That was all that mattered.

Her mind was reeling and she was still unsettled by the happiness that she had seen in Emma’s eyes that she hadn’t heard Snow come back to her rooms. She was grateful for her step-daughter some days and others the old hatred still boiled in the back of her mind. Every time that she looked into Snow’s eyes, she saw her own pain reflected. They had both lost their children, together they were trying to deal with it. Snow tried to comfort her, but Regina only wanted to get rid of her heart. The pain was almost too unbearable some days and with Snow’s constant hope, she thought she might slip and kill her only to realize that she would end up destroying herself in the process. 

This morning, however, Snow sensed that something was different. She could see it in Regina’s body. She could feel it in the air. Regina was different. There was a different emotion racking her body and Snow knew what Regina was capable of when her emotions ruled her head.

“You didn’t sleep?” Snow asked as she continued to get closer, noticing the still made bed.

“I couldn’t.”

“You didn’t?”

“I didn’t, what?”

“You stayed up all night watching him, didn’t you?” Snow asked her.

“He is my son. I only wanted to make sure that he was happy and safe. I am sure that you would have done the same.”

“I would.”

“Then don’t lecture me about it.”

“I am not. But, I do know that staring into that mirror is only going to drive you mad. We need to work with Tink and Blue. They’ll find a way. If you help…”

“They won’t let me help them. My magic and fairy dust doesn’t mix. I need to find a way around my darkness. I don’t want to cast another curse. I just want to find a way home.”

“This is our home.”

“No, Princess, this is not my home anymore. It never really was. This was your father’s castle. I was just living here for a while. It is your castle now, Snow. Keep it. I’ll take my   
house at 108 Mifflin Street over this place any day.”

“Regina?”

“That is my name. I am the daughter of a peasant and a prince. What does that make me? A queen? No, I am nothing more than a princess without a land or titles. I like it that   
way.”

“I will share the kingdom with you,” Snow told her.

“I don’t want it. I never really did. I just wanted…”

“Daniel…I know,” Snow replied.

“No…love. That is all I ever really wanted. Everything I have ever done was to find love. I didn’t realize that I couldn’t force anyone to love me. I was hurt and angry and I wanted you to feel the same way. I never understood how my magic was creating the darkness I felt and the hole in my heart. I never tried to look for anything better. Hell, even Tink tried to steer me away from the evil and towards Robin Hood, lot of good that did her.”

“Blue let her back.”

“Yeah, after the debacle in Storybrooke with Pan.”

“You’ve proven that people can change. You’ve done more in the past three years for us than I ever thought you would. You finally learned that you can earn trust, love and friendship by putting others’ feelings before your own. You tried to learn to temper your magic, but even I have to admit that on Neverland, I was glad that you were with us.”

“Why?”

“Because I couldn’t do what you did.”

“What embrace my darkness to save us all?”

“Yes,” Snow answered.

“You did once.”

“I know.”

“I have forgiven you for that.”

“I haven’t forgiven myself.”

“That is what you think of when you get angry now, isn’t it?” Regina asked.

“Yes, it is. Every time I feel myself starting to lose control and get angry, I think about your mother. I think about the one person’s life that I…”

“You’ve taken other lives on the battle field, Snow.”

“But, I murdered your mother.”

“I murdered entire towns. Are you sure you want to play this game? I am sure that I could match your supposed darkness and raise you a curse. That isn’t the point. I realized that with my mother’s death, you finally realized that life wasn’t black and white.”

“There is a lot of gray,” Snow stated.

“And, while you may never agree fully with my ways of doing things, you understand that sometimes evil is necessary for the means to justify the outcome. You can’t order it to happen. You never could. That is what I was there for. I was to take the blame for all the evil that may or may not happen, because I am the one with the dark heart.”

“But, you aren’t. I remember seeing it in the woods, when you were trying to bury it. It was glowing red with love. I think that Henry healed you, but there is more to it than that, isn’t there? There is someone else… who is it, Regina? Who helped you become Regina, again?”


	2. Ending the Curse

Regina stayed to herself for a few days after seeing Henry. At least Snow was leaving her alone to try to deal with her grief. She would come and check on her occasionally, hoping that Regain didn’t take a turn towards evil again. She knew that Snow would come in her rooms and check on her, because there would be fresh flowers or a new book. Once she even came in with Belle. She knew that Belle had been there because of the book they left. She eyed it this morning again, like she had for the last three mornings.

She walked over to the table it was sitting on and glanced at the title once more. MIRROR MAGIC. She could only wonder what Snow was hinting at by leaving the book there. Did Snow think that there was some way that she could use the mirror to get back to Henry and Emma? The only magic that she knew happened with mirrors took you to Wonderland and Wonderland was not somewhere she wanted to be either.

She picked the book up and sat down in front of her dressing mirror. She opened the book and began to scan the contents. She realized that the book was written in a mixture of Latin, Greek, and Elfish. She wondered how Belle came to get the book, but realized that she and Neal had ventured off to Rumple’s castle in an attempt to bring him back. She realized that the book was a peace offering and a plea at the same time. If Regina could find a way to get back, then maybe she would help them bring the imp back as well.  
She looked at mirror and sighed. It wasn’t Henry that was plaguing her so much now. It was the smile on Emma’s face. She had given Emma something that she had personally taken from her, twice now, a family. She didn’t want to take that from her again. Emma deserved to be happy. It wasn’t her fault who her parents were. She was an innocent in all of this, just like Henry.

She was also Regina’s reason. She was the catalyst that caused her to change. She along with Henry drove Regina’s change. They understood each other in a way that Snow never could. They had bonded over their son and their pasts. Emma was the only person who didn’t call her the Evil Queen. She had always referred to her just as Regina, because that was the only side of her that she’d seen.

Her fingers stopped on a page and she stared into the glass. She knew that Snow would ask to see her eventually and she knew that Snow would break, seeing her happiness. She had no one to blame for her problems but herself.

“Mirror, mirror on the wall, can you show me my downfall?” Regina asked it.

The mirror swirled purple and then opened into a scene that Regina knew all too well. She stared down the lonesome road and saw the yellow bug. Suddenly, the mirror zoomed in on Emma and herself.

“My gift to you is happy memories. You will never have been without Henry. He will have always been in your life,” she saw herself say, holding Emma’s hands.

She shook her head. She didn’t want to see this scene. She saw it every day when she slept. She knew the conversation. She’d replayed it in her mind so many times. 

“What about you?” Emma asked her.

“We’ll all go back. You have to go. It is your best chance, for both of you. Henry needs his mother. I can’t go with you. It has to be you.”

“But, I just found all of you. I don’t want to go alone. I need you.”

“You’ll be fine, Emma. We’ll be with you in your heart. We’ll always be with you,” Snow told her. “It is your best chance. We love you, both.”

Emma was crying. Snow was crying. They were all crying. 

Regina started to wave her hand at the mirror. She didn’t want to hear it all again. She wanted to find a way to get back, not relive her past. 

“Regina?” Emma asked, as Henry said goodbye to his grandparents and his father, Neal.

“Yes?”

“What about you?”

“What about me?”

“You fought so hard for this and now, you’re losing it all again.”

“I know.”

“But…”

“Now, Miss Swan, this is all my fault. I am giving your new memories to replace the old. I have to give up the one thing that I love to end the curse. Henry needs you.”

“You have to give up Henry.”

“Yes, because he has my heart. He always has. He gave me a reason to change.”

“Then don’t forget him or why you started to change”

“I never will.”

“Good.”

“Emma?”

“Yes?”

“Whatever your life may be, please be happy. That is all I want for you both now. You can’t have your family, but at least you can be happy.”

“I am sure that we will…be happy.”

“You won’t remember us, so you will not bear the pain of this day once you cross the line. The last few years won’t exist for you. I’ll do what I can to make the transition easier for you, but the rest is up to you both.”

“I am sure that we will be okay.”

“You’re a Charming, of course, you will.”

“Regina, do one thing for us,” Emma told her.

“Anything,” Regina told her.

“Find a way to bring us back together.”

“You won’t remember any of this. Why would I rip you out of your happiness just for my own? Why would you ask that of me?”

“Because I’m the Savior,” Emma told her.

“I can’t do that. I won’t do that. I won’t be the reason that anyone is in pain anymore.”

“Then, find me some reason to come save you all. Make me believe again. Give me a reason.”

“I won’t do that.”

“You will. I know you will. You can and you must.”

“Why, Emma? Why must I find a reason to bring you back to us? What is it?”

“Look inside yourself and you’ll see why,” Emma told her.

Regina just stared at the mirror. She knew now what Emma was alluding to, but hindsight was always twenty/twenty. Why couldn’t Emma just tell her then? Why couldn’t she tell Emma?

“Find me, Regina. Find me and bring us back together. Cast another curse if you must.”

“You know I won’t do that,” Regina told her.

“Then, you will only succeed in breaking more hearts,” Emma told her.

She pulled Regina into her and hugged her. They walked to the line. Henry hugged and then got in the Bug. Emma stared at her one last time.

“Regina…”

“Emma, you need to go. I…we don’t have much time. You have to get to safety.”

“Find me, Regina. I know that you can. You are the only one who can. Don’t fight it this time.”

“Don’t fight what?” Regina asked as Emma got in the Bug.

As Emma drove away, Regina turned to fight the curse, by destroying her own. She took one last glimpse at the Bug to make sure it was over the line before she raised her hands and let her magic flow. She swore that she could hear Emma’s voice on the wind as the two curses battled around her. She swore that she heard her Emma say “love.”  
Regina collapsed on her dressing table. She flicked her hand at the images and the mirror went quiet again. She started crying. She let everything go. She left her heart in Storybrooke and it didn’t matter how much hope she had. She wasn’t starting to feel better. She didn’t want to feel better. She wanted Henry. She wanted Emma…

She sat up and stared at herself in the mirror. She saw the puffiness in her eyes and the redness that the crying has created. She wasn’t her presentable self. She hated it. She hated feeling this way and there was nothing that she could do to stop it. She wasn’t in control and she was breaking a little more each day.

She knew that Snow was still coming in to see her. She waited today. Today, she needed company. Today she needed someone else to talk to her.

“Regina?” Snow asked, as she entered with a plate of lunch.

“Snow.”

“You haven’t eaten in days. Please eat something. Will you please eat?”

“Yes, if you stay.”

“You want me to stay?”

“Please, just for a while.”

Snow crossed the room and set the plate down. She took another seat near the plate, and watched as Regina came over and sat down. She watched her eyes, her body and the way she moved. Snow could see the pain and wanted to do something for her.

“You got the book, I see,” Snow stated.

“I did.”

“Have you read any of it?”

“I skimmed it.”

“Did anything stand out to you?”

“Not really.”

“Can we use it?”

“If we wanted to go to Wonderland, and I have no desire to go there.”

“Oh,” Snow replied, slightly upset by the revelation.

“Don’t give up.”

“Why are you telling me that?”

“Because if you give up hope, I will.”

Snow realized then what her presence had been doing for Regina. She wasn’t the reason that she was staying on the path of good. She was fostering her hope and helping her maintain some semblance of normalcy. Snow was feeding her hope in spades. She was helping Regina survive.

Snow took her hand in her own. She gave it a squeeze and then smiled at Regina. She knew that their unlikely alliance frightened some of the citizens of the Enchanted Forest, but Regina had yet to do anything new to them.

“I won’t.”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me, yet. I have a favor to ask of it. That is if you think that you can do it.”

“You want to see Emma?”

“Please.”

“Alright, Snow.”

Regina started to stand up but Snow caught her arm. “Eat first,” she told her. Regina looked into her blue hazel eyes and nodded. She picked at her plate, but managed to eat enough that Snow wouldn’t worry about her for a while. It was enough to help her strength.

She pushed the plate from her. She took Snow’s hand and led her over to the mirror. She had Snow sit down in front of her dressing table. She placed her hands on Snow’s shoulders. 

“Mirror, Mirror on the wall, show me the Savior of us all,” Regina told it.

The mirror swirled and swirled. Regina cocked her head and waited. The swirling continued. Snow looked up at her and wondered what happened.

“Mirror, mirror, on the wall, show me the Swan!” Regina demanded.

The swirling stopped and parted. The image of Emma came into focus and they both gasped. She was smiling at someone while sitting behind a wooden desk. Her name was on a plaque in front of her on the desk.

“Emma…” Snow whispered.

Regina dug her hands, harder, into Snow’s shoulders. She was frozen to the spot. Emma’s smile was radiant as always and she was afraid that her face would betray her feeling to Snow.

“Can we hear her?”

Regina waved her hand in front of the mirror. Emma’s voice began to come through the mirror. It was like a weird TV show. 

“You jumped bail, Quinton. You cost me twenty grand and you want me to let you go. I don’t think so. You are going to county tonight and tomorrow, you’ll appear before the judge for sentencing. I will collect my money back from the court and our business will be over.”

“Come on, Swan. You can’t do this. I’ve got mouths to feed.”

“Maybe you should have thought about that before you skipped town and broke the law. If you wanted to help you kids, maybe you should have found a more legal profession. Stealing money from the banks is not the way. You aren’t Robin Hood. And, life isn’t a fairy tale. Life is hard.”

“Tell me about it,” he replied.

“You don’t want me to. Just know that I understand where you are coming from. If you hadn’t skipped then you might have only gotten a few months, but you did. You’re looking at five years now. I can’t help that. You did it to yourself. Maybe next time your think about it more before you decide to run from me. I haven’t lost a man yet.”

“Yeah, right, I know about you and your men,” he stated.

“What does that mean?” she questioned him.

“Everyone has heard the rumors.”

“What rumors?”

“Your guy got you knocked up and left you to take the fall. I mean come on Swan. We all know that this was the only job that you could get. Who is going to hire a single teenage mother ex-con? Give up your high and mighty I follow the law attitude. You are no better than the rest of us. You stole to survive.”

“I did. I’ll admit that, Quinton. I stole food to eat.”

“And, you’re going to lecture me on being a thief?”

“I am not lecturing, just stating facts. What do you expect? Think about what you did. I did. I changed what I was and became a law abiding citizen. You can do that, too.”

He started to stand up. 

“Don’t think about it. The cops will be here any second and you are going with them. Just remember to keep your head down and don’t screw anybody and you’ll make it out.”

“Fuck you, Swan!” he called out.

Regina could feel her anger building. She wanted smack the man after what he said to Emma. She could feel Snow’s anger building toward the man as well. Without thinking she raised her hand and made a quick gesture. The man Emma called Quinton fell out of his chair.

Emma stood up to check on him. Regina’s eyes went wide and Snow gasped. Regina looked at her hand before waving it in front of the mirror ending their session.

“I need sleep. I am sorry. Maybe we can look again later, after I’ve rested.”

“Sure, Regina. I’ll bring Charming. I am sure that he would like to see Henry and Emma both.”

“Thank you, again.”

“For what?”

“Not letting me give up,” Regina stated.

“We’ll find a way. We always do. And, we always will, Regina. It’s our thing.”


	3. Dinner Belle

It was late in the evening when Snow came back to Regina's room. It was almost surreal the amount of care that Snow was giving her. She knew that it was Snow's nature, but she still wondered at her motivation. She couldn't help but think it was just so they could use her magical talents to get back to the Land Without Magic.

She noticed that David followed her this time. He was carrying two plates of food. Belle was behind him, carrying two as well. Snow ushered them over to the table and began to spread out a table cloth, utensils and cups. David and Belle set the plates and Snow produced a bottle of wine. She poured the wine while Regina just surveyed the scene.

They were all acting like nothing had ever happened between them. She could believe that her enemies were now her friends and they were preparing to dine with her. She shook her head. Emma and Henry had really saved them all and healed their hearts.

"Please come eat with us," Snow told her.

"Well, since you've made yourself at home, I guess I will," Regina replied with her usual snarkiness.

Snow smiled. Regina was starting to come back to them. She knew that it was a good sign, but she was also worried about what Regina was doing at night, alone and just with the mirror. Snow was trying to watch her and help her. She was doing it for Henry and Emma, but she was doing it for Regina as well. She didn't want her to fall back into her darkness. She realized now, after everything, how tempting the dark could be and how easy it could be to accept it.

"Thank you for dining with us," Belle told her as Regina joined them at the table.

Regina gave her a look. She couldn't understand Belle. The woman was a paradox walking. She loved Rumple, which in itself, puzzled Regina.

"Regina," Charming started, "How are you feeling tonight'?"

"I am tired, but I am doing better. Thank you for asking. You didn't have to, though. I know why you are here. I understand it. I will help you."

"I am not trying to butter you up, Regina. We are worried about you. You've locked yourself up in her for weeks. You need to leave this room," he told her.

"I am fine, David."

"You're pale, Regina. At least go riding with us tomorrow, it will do you good. I know how much you missed your horses," Belle told her.

Regina watched them all. She knew that they meant well, but she didn't want to go outside. She didn't feel like being social. She wanted to stare into the mirror and read the book on mirror magic until she could figure out a way to get back. She didn't care how long it took. She didn't care if her health suffered some. It would be worth it in the end once she was back with Henry and Emma.

 

"I know that I agreed to show you Emma in the mirror, but this is too much."

"Regina," Snow started.

"No, don't, please don't. I am not going to argue with you. I will show you Emma, but beyond that, I promise nothing," Regina stated.

"We aren`t asking you for anything," Snow replied.

"Aren't you?"

"No, we are trying to help you. We don't want you to be suffering so much. Henry wouldn't want this for you. Regina, you need to get out of this room," Belle told her.

"I am doing this for Henry," Regina shouted as she pushed back from the table and stood.

Regina didn't wait for them to do anything. She stormed across her room. Snow jumped up immediately and followed her. She wrapped her arms around Regina and hugged her tightly.

"I know it hurts."

"Let me go," Regina said only loud enough for Snow to hear.

“Snow," Regina said in warning.

"I know how you feel. I am not letting you go. I will fight you if I have to, but you have to realize that staying locked up in here and staring at the mirror isn't healthy."

"I don't care if it is healthy. I just want to be happy. I can't be happy without Henry and without..."

"I know. You have a hole in your heart. You think that you'll never be happy again. I am not saying that it will be easy. I know that we are looking for ways to get back to them. But, Henry wouldn't want this. He wou1dn`t want you to waste away to get back to him."

"I am doing this for him."

"No, you aren't. You are taking the easy way out. You are hiding."

"I do not hide."

"You are hiding behind the mirror, Regina. I've let you alone this long, but I can't anymore. I will not let you waste away in here. Come riding with us in the morning."

"If I agree, will you leave me a1one?"

"I'll give you one week," Snow told her.

"Then, I'll go riding with you," Regina replied, slumping in defeat.

Snow smiled at her, as she turned her around and released her. Regina's eyes were blurry but she saw the reassurance in Snow's eyes. Snow took her by the waist and led her back to the table and dinner. She sat down and looked across the table at Belle. Her blue eyes were haunted but she was trying to reassure Regina as well.

"Belle?" Regina asked.

"Yes," Belle answered.

"When are you going back to Neal?"

"Next week sometime, I believe. There are some books here that I want to check out first in your old library. Why? Did you want to come back with me?"

"I might."

"Can I ask why?" Snow asked her.

"Because I am sure that Rumple has some books that I need to look at," Regina replied.

Snow seemed to be satisfied with answer, but Regina could tell that she had some reservations about Regina leaving. She wouldn't hold her back, but she was afraid of what would happen with Regina once she was at Rumple castle, possibly unsupervised. She knew how much dark magic he possessed and she could only hope that Regina wouldn't digress back into the darkness while she was there. Regina gave her a reassuring smile in hopes to elevate the worry that overcame them all at her request to go to Rumple's castle.

Regina turned back to her plate and began to eat in earnest, She knew that they would worry, but she would try to make them understand that she wasn't going to slip. She was going to find a way to get back to them. Rumple's library was the best magical library in all the kingdoms. He would have tomes that no one else did or had even seen before. Regina thought it was their best chance. She just needed to find something while she was there to prove it to them when she came back.

She was thankful that Belle didn`t push her for more information. She was grateful that she was being nice about the situation. She knew that Belle didn't have to be, but she knew that Belle would probably be more apt to talk to her about finding a way to bring Rumpelstiltskin back to life once they were away from the Charmings.

"I only have one question," David said, breaking the silence.

"Yes?" Regina inquired.

"Was Emma happy when you saw her?"

"She didn't tell you?" Regina replied in question, turning gaze to Snow.

"She said she was, but...I need to know. Is my daughter happy? Can you tell me that?"

"She seemed happy enough. She was at work, but she didn't seem be angry or depressed. The few times that I have caught glimpses of her with Henry, she was well. She isalways smiling when she is with him. They seem to have a good life in New York," Regina told him.

He sat back in his chair, a little harder than he meant and said, "Good I'm glad. That's good."

Regina watched as his body changed. He didn't need to see her in the mirror. He just needed to know that his daughter was happy. That was all he wanted for her and Regina knew it. She was glad that she could give him that. He gave her his electric smile. He stood up and began to clean up the table since they were finished with their meal.

"I'll clean up. I’ll leave you all to look after them. She's happy. She's well and doing well. I'm glad," he told them as he continued to clean the table.

Snow just watched him as he gathered everything up and left Regina's mom. She turned to look at Regina. She didn't have Charmings faith, not all the time, but she was grateful that Regina didn't point it out now. They shared the bond of their missing children. It was bringing them closer, like sisters.

“Regina?”

“Yes, Belle?”

“Are you sure that you should do this?”

“That I should do what?”

“Are you sure that you should use the mirror like this?”

“It is the only connection that I have to Henry. It is no longer a choice. It is a must for me. I have to see my son.”

“But, it is hurting you.”

“It hurts worse not being able to see him.”

“I understand that you are hurting, but sometimes it is better to let go and…” Belle started but was cut off by a very stern look from Regina.

“I will never give up on my son.”

Belle just gave a very slight grin and shook her head. Snow joined them. She saw the tension between them, but didn’t say anything. She knew how bad it hurt Regina to see Henry but not be able to talk to him, not be able to touch him, and not be able to love him like a mother.

“Are you ready?” Regina asked as she sat in front of the mirror.

Belle stood beside them. She picked up the book that she’d left weeks ago. She saw the pages had been dog-eared and she could tell the pages that Regina had been studying. She flipped through it and landed on a section in Greek. It looked like Regina had been studying that page heavily. It mentioned something about affecting through the mirror. She looked up into the mirror and into Regina’s face. There was a shared recognition. She wondered what Regina was trying to do. Did she think that she could affect Henry and Emma through the mirror? She met Regina’s eyes just as she raised her hands and began to speak to the mirror.

“Mirror, mirror on the wall, will you show me the child of the fairest of them all?”

The mirror swirled. Belle watched intently at the purple smoke swirling inside the glass. She actually gasped when she saw a vision beginning to form before her. She was further amazed when Emma came into view. Henry was with her.

“Ma?” Henry asked.

“Yeah, kid?”

“I thought that Jacob was coming over tonight.”

“Nope, not tonight.”

“Something happen with him.”

“You could say that.”

“What?” Henry just flat out asked.

“I had to bond him today.”

“For what?”

“Failure to appear and some stuff I don’t want to get into, okay,” Emma told him.

“Bad stuff?”

“Yeah, bad stuff, kid. Let’s just say that he had me completely fooled. I am not sure what I actually saw in him to begin with. Anyway, it’ll be just us for a while.”

“I can handle that,” Henry answered.

“Did you like him?”

“He was alright, Ma. Don’t worry about him. He should have known better. You are the best bounty hunter bail bonds person on the East Coast. He knew what he was getting into. It’s his fault, not yours. You’ll find someone. I am sure of it.”

“I wish I had your faith in things, kid, but thanks.”

“Can we go to Boston for the weekend?”

“You want to go to Boston?” Emma asked him.

“It is what we do. You break up. You mope a little. I try to cheer you up. We go back to Boston to visit. You drop me off with James and David. You go out with Paddy and get drunk. Sunday we drive back to the City and we go on like it never happened,” Henry told her.

“That predicable huh?”

“Yeah, Ma, you kinda are,” he answered, picking up a cup of cocoa with cinnamon sprinkled on top and taking a long sip.

She pushed a plate of breakfast at him. She sat down with her own. She watched her fourteen year old son before she picked up her cocoa and took a drink. She sat down her mug and stared into his hazel eyes.

“How about I call Paddy and see if he can get us tickets to a Sox game?”

“Seriously?”

“Seriously. I think they are playing at home this week. We’ll catch a game, hang out with some old friends and not go out and get drunk. Sound good?” Emma asked.

“Sounds awesome,” Henry replied.

They both turned to their plates and began to eat their breakfast in earnest. Regina smiled as she watched Henry devour his meal. At least he has a good appetite, she thought to herself.

“Henry, hurry up or you’re going to be late going to school.”

“You can’t drop me off today?”

“Nope, I got to go to court to collect my bail reimbursements. It’s pay day kid. I gotta go if you want to eat next week.”

“Okay, Ma. I’ll take the subway. I won’t be late. I promise.”

“Is your pass okay?”

“Yeah,” he replied.

“Need some lunch money?”

“Nope, I’m good.”

“Text me if you need me. Don’t get caught doing it though. And, if Leo or Jeff wants to go, too, let me know. I’ll try to get extra tickets for the game. I’ll call their parents later to clear it if they want to go. Now, get a move on,” Emma told him.

They watched as Henry finished what little bit was on his plate and ran off to finish getting ready for school. The scene didn’t leave Emma. They watched as she finished her breakfast and cleared the table.

It seemed so mundane. But, Snow just kept watching her daughter in the mirror. She watched as she washed off the dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. She watched her as she add soap and started the dishwasher. It was the simple things that amazed them all. It was just all so normal, but it was foreign, too.

Henry came back into the room in a blur. Regina noted the private school uniform. She was grateful that Emma made enough that she could afford to send him to a better school. He took another sip of his cocoa before he slammed the mug on the table, snatched his satchel, ran around the table, gave Emma a quick kiss on the cheek and ran out the door.

Emma stood in the kitchen for a minute with a smile on her face, but shook her head at her son. She took care of his mug. She then went into her own room and dressed for court.

“Five bounties, ten bails fulfilled, not a bad week, Swan,” she told herself.

The mirror swirled and the vision was gone. Snow turned to look at Regina. She could tell that she’d used a great deal of energy to give her the vision, but she wondered why it ended so quickly. She didn’t want to push Regina.

“Thank you,” she told her instead.

“Maybe later, I can show you more,” Regina told her.

“You need your rest,” Belle told her.

“I know. I will. I promise.”

“Can I stay and talk with you for a while?” Belle asked her.

“If you would like,” Regina told her.

“Good night, you two. We’ll come get you for the ride tomorrow. Have a good night,” Snow told them as she left them alone.

“What did you want to talk about?”

Belle held up the book. It was open to the page she’d found earlier. Regina stared at the page and then back at the blue eyes of Belle.

“Want to tell me what you are trying to do?”

“I am trying to find a way to my son.”

“You are trying to go through the mirror?”

“I can’t. The only land accessible through a mirror is Wonderland. I don’t want to end up there. I hate that place.”

“Then what are you trying to do?”

“I am trying to give Henry a message.”


End file.
